St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-10-11
BREAKERS AHEAD.

The announcement was made yeSter-
day by the Minnesota Il Northwestern
road, that it would withdraw from the
Western States Passenger association,
and on Jan. l, 1883, place on sale 1000
mile tickets at two cents per nile. This
is signal victory for the commercial
travellers who, since the going into
effect of the interstate commerce
law, have been diligently striving to get
concessions from the various North
western railroads. The fight has been
fTuitless until now, when the Minnesota
& Northwestern extends the right hand
of fellowship to the knights of the grip
and offers them transportation and the
reduced rate of two cents per mile.
While the fight was made and won by
the commercial travellers and they will
reap a benefit, the entire public
will also be benefited, for the
road has no right to discriminate in
favor of one class of people consequently
the two cents per mile rate must be
made to all purchasers of the 2,000-mile
ticket over that line, whether they are
representatives of commercial houses OF
4lOl. IL liC hiih Win p1OlllCliC CyC
this action of the Minnesota & North
western road is but the signal for cut
rate war to all points between st. Paul
and Chicago, and there is a reasonable
probability that the battle will be pre-
cipitated within the next thirty days,
for railroads are suspicious corporations,
and the slightest evidence, whether cir
cumStantial or actual, that the Mimne-
sofa u Northwestern road has offered
this two cent per mile rate
before January will be sufficient to
excite competing lines to make some
departure from the rules of the asSucia-
ton quite as wild and aggressive as the
example set them by the road that has
Signified its intention of. withdrawing
from the association. If once started,
the general smashing of rates witnessed
four years ago, when man could ride
from st. Paul to Chicago for twenty-five
cents, is liable to recur; for with no as
ISOLATION rules and regulations to hold
them i'll line, there is nothing to pre-
vent the railroads from doing as they
please with their passenger traffic, so
long as they deal with all persons alike.
Whether this move on the part of the
Minnesota & Northwestern will prove
profitable one in the long run, is a
question that can only be answered i'm
the experiment itself. The GLOBE has
it from reliable source that the con-
cession was purchased on the promise
made by the L. P. A. that members of
that association and all commercial
travellers would use their influence
with their employers to ship their
freight over that line, and any one who
understands the close alliance between
the jobberS and their representa-
tiyes ON the road can readily
see that the influence of the com
mercial traveller with his employer is
no insignificant matter. If the COM
mercial traveller gets a reduction in his
transportation that is so much money
in his employers pocket, and the ex-
penses of the house are cut down just
that much. This is where the CONNER
cial traveller gets his leverage Oh the
iobber. AS soon as it is demonstrated
to the satisfaction of other lines that
this is the true state of affairs, they will
make an effort to get their percentage
of the freight business, and the result
will probably be; an utter decentralization
of both freight and passenger rates. No
matter to what extreme the railroads see